News Release

YEREVAN, Armenia – September 26, 2007 - Synopsys, Inc., a world leader in semiconductor design software, today announced that 24 Master and 79 Bachelor students of Synopsys’ Armenia Educational Department (SAED) successfully completed the Synopsys Educational program and now stand ready to begin their professional engineering careers. When the Armenian Government declared the high-tech industry to be a flagship of the national economy, offering high-quality engineering education became a priority. To that end, Synopsys established programs in microelectronics design education with State Engineering University of Armenia (SEUA) and Yerevan State University (YSU). The goal of SAED is to train highly qualified specialists in the field of very large scale integration (VLSI) design and electronic design automation (EDA).

After several years of hard study, today’s graduates are well equipped to meet the highest international engineering standards. During the commencement ceremony, Chi-Foon Chan, president and chief operating officer at Synopsys, conferred Synopsys Certificates of Achievement to the graduates.

In the first years of the Bachelor program, students obtain a basic education in mathematics, physics and other scientific disciplines at their chosen universities. After acquiring a basic education, the top-performing students are selected to participate in the SAED program. Selection of students is made by Synopsys technical experts and professors from the university. Further education in the Bachelor program, Master program and Ph.D. studies are conducted by a customized SAED curriculum for VLSI design and EDA.

Studies are carried out in specially equipped classrooms donated by Synopsys (located in both Synopsys Armenia and the university) where each student has access to the latest EDA software tools via a network. Teaching, supervision of course projects, Master’s theses and Ph.D. dissertations are targeted toward actual design projects at Synopsys Armenia, which are completed jointly with leading professionals from Synopsys and professors from the university. Upon successful completion of the SAED program, graduates are qualified to work for Synopsys Armenia as well as other IT companies.

“I’m happy to be here and participate in this exciting program that brings Armenians into the electronics design workforce,” said Chi-Foon Chan. “We look forward to many more graduations and a growing number of high-tech professionals who are key to making Armenia a leader in silicon design.”

“It’s great to see the enthusiasm and energy of these graduates as they prepare for a career in advanced electronic design,” said Vazgen Melikyan, Synopsys’ director of SAED. “Every year we will bring more professionals into the electronics industry workforce and continue to make Armenia an important part of the industry.”

“Synopsys’ generosity and expertise has been instrumental in Armenia’s entrance into the high-tech domain,” said Aram Simonyan, rector at YSU. “As we celebrate these graduates’ accomplishments, we see a bright future for them and for our country in today’s growing electronics markets.”

“Today, we congratulate these graduates and thank Synopsys for their support in making these students’ education possible,” said Vostanik Marukhyan, rector SEUA. “The extensive selection of Synopsys’ tools and technology has made it possible for these candidates to join the ranks of the most educated professionals in the industry.“

“Today’s ceremony symbolizes a whole period of hard work and great efforts made by people who lead Synopsys to success and development in our country, in Armenia,” said David Shaghgamyan, graduate from Master Program, currently employed in Synopsys Armenia. “The high qualification of department lecturers and the high standard of education provide an opportunity to the majority of department graduates to join Synopsys Armenia R&D team.”

About Synopsys Armenia CJSCSynopsys established its presence in Armenia in 2004, shortly after Armenia’s declaration of information technology (IT) as a priority business for the country. Since then, Synopsys Armenia closed joint stock company (CJSC), has become one of the largest Synopsys sites outside of the US, providing R&D and product support in EDA, design for manufacturing (DFM) and the development of semiconductor intellectual property (IP). Currently, the company employs several hundred qualified Armenian engineers, and is one of largest IT employers in Armenia. To support its growth, the company is investing in IT education, and is engaged in a number of pioneering and successful cooperation programs with major Armenian universities, such as Yerevan State University (YSU), State Engineering University of Armenia (SEUA), American University of Armenia (AUA), and the Moscow Institute of Electronic Technologies (MIET). To supplement these activities, the company consistently promotes public interest in the industry by sponsoring Presidential Awards for the best students in IT, contests among young specialists and students, and through media, charity work and volunteer activities. Synopsys Armenia CJSC is located in Yerevan.

About the Synopsys for Armenia Charitable FoundationThe Synopsys for Armenia Charitable Foundation was established in July of 2005. It supports Synopsys’ R&D operations in Armenia through a number of educational and social initiatives. Its activities are divided into two sections: educational and social. The Foundation’s educational programs include support to all Synopsys educational programs for ongoing professional engineering education, conducted in cooperation with major Armenia universities. The Foundation also funds the RA Presidential Awards for the best students in the IT sector and sponsors various IT-related contests targeting students and young professionals. The foundation’s social activities primarily assist the local communities.

About SynopsysSynopsys, Inc. is a world leader in electronic design automation (EDA) software for semiconductor design. The company delivers technology-leading system and semiconductor design and verification platforms, IC manufacturing and yield optimization solutions, semiconductor intellectual property and design services to the global electronics market. These solutions enable the development and production of complex integrated circuits and electronic systems. Through its comprehensive solutions, Synopsys addresses the key challenges designers and manufacturers face today, including power management, accelerated time to yield and system-to-silicon verification. Synopsys is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and has more than 60 offices located throughout North America, Europe, Japan and Asia. Visit Synopsys online at http://www.synopsys.com.